Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Mar 26, 2015 11:33 am I'm finding this to be so frustrating. Can't get an accurate cost on siteworks until money has been committed to a building firm which then leaves the ball in their court (they can charge whatever they want and I've heard some terrible stories on that count). But, don't want to give any company money until I know what I'm looking at regarding siteworks. Grrr real catch 22. We will get an independent engineers report but they won't be able to tell us what to expect in terms of cost. Re: Site Works, A Catch 22 2Mar 26, 2015 6:38 pm Once you start digging, it is a world of unknown. I have no idea what excavation costs are in the city, but assume they are extremely high compared to rural area due the the nature that jobs are relatively small , transport is a pain( and slow) and the equipment is harder to store. I'm assuming the builder wants a commitment at which point they will investigate more on the ground type which will costs them money to determine. All other work they should be able to quote to the dollar. Re: Site Works, A Catch 22 3Mar 26, 2015 6:52 pm Are you building in an estate? Sometimes you can get siteworks fixed. Otherwise, can you insist on only minimal deposit ($1500 or something) until soil testing has been done? Jen (& Dave) Plantation Bronte, Ormeau Ridge, Gold Coast QLD 12/03/2015 - Commencement... 26/08/2015 - Handover! viewtopic.php?f=31&t=76446 Re: Site Works, A Catch 22 4Mar 26, 2015 7:09 pm You could get your own soil test ($300ish) to give you a rough idea in regards to classification. But will also depend on site prep and cutting and filling etc we did soil test to make sure we were M class so could counter if builder found different and own piece of mind (our builder did m class as stabdard) Re: Site Works, A Catch 22 5Mar 26, 2015 7:30 pm One approach is to find a builder you can trust. Ok, back in reality... Many builders will give an estimate on what footings and siteworks will cost based on their experience in the area. You can take it with a grain of salt, but what you can ask for is those estimates on how much it would cost, and also what specification of footing you get for that money. So that's the thickness of slab, and depth of beams etc. Ideally you'd get another price for the case if you need deeper beams, again against a spec. So if you have a price on 400mm beams and 600mm beams, if they later come back saying you need 700mm, you have some reality check to see if they are gouging you. Alternatively you can get a soil report done at your expense. But they will still want to do drafting and engineering to give you an actual price, so it may not help you so much. Some companies will give "fixed price" footings and siteworks, but you are likely to be paying more on average, as they want to cover themselves. Re: Site Works, A Catch 22 6Mar 26, 2015 8:39 pm Hi, Our builder said that they usually over allow by 10-20% and as a result they usually end up passing on a credit. Our credit was $3000 and the detail we received was fine (actual vs estimate) actuals all had quotes & invoices attached. I know that quotes & invoices do not always mean we paid a fair price, we got stung $1,000 on stormwater even though we'd moved them to the front of the property. I guess you need to ask for transparency? Our builder was happy to provide details, contractually builders are obliged to not pick PC sums out of the sky & there are penalties for big discrepancies (here in WA). Good luck MBA and HIA both have sub contract agreements, check them out 2 7316 I want to build a bigger driveway (without a nature strip) than has been approved under my CDC. I’ve also had a DA approved to build a deck. It looks like I can do this… 0 4812 Fair Trading can issue orders to rectify and complete but once the matter goes to NCAT these orders are automatically vacated. You will have to terminate contract and sue… 21 29746 |